Knee-rest.



M. W. McINTYRE.

KNEE REST. 1

APPLICATION FILED APR-19, 1915- Patented Feb. 15, 1916.

I is a specification.

"UNIT D STATES "oFFrcE..

MALCOLM w. n rc mrYnE', or-nnwronr, KENTUCKY.

KNEE-REST.

' To all whom it may concern. 4

Be it known that I, MALCOLM. W.'Mo- INTYRE, 'a citizen 'of the United States, and

'a 'resident of Newport, in the county of Campbell-and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and usefuli Improvements in Knee-Rests, of which the following My invention relates'to rests, and its object is'to facilitate andreduce the discomfort of working in kneeling position, as inscrubbing, finishing, carpeting or similar work upon any extended flat surface, especially 'upon fioorsin buildings.

' My invention consists in the combination .of parts and in the details of construction and arrangement of parts as will herein be more fully described and claimed. 1 In the drawing: Figure 1 is a side eleva tion partially in section on the line m'w of Fig. 2, and Fig. 2 is a bottom view, of a device embodying my invention.

- base or bottom] 1 is composed of a board,

As I prefer to construct my invention, a

preferably of wood, and this base has two rearward sockets 2 and two forward sockets 3, which are preferably formed by boring holes through the board. The rearward 1 sockets 2 are located back-close to the rear end of the board 1, but the forward sockets 3 are located a considerable distance back from the front of the board; in fact, bein only slightly forward of the middle thereo ach pair of sockets 2 and 3, however, are

preferably alinedat right angles to the length of the board; and across the top f ofthe board, over'the sockets 2 and sockets 3, are metal plates or strips 4 and 5, which are secured to the top ofthe board by bolts 6 and 7, respectively. Fixed to the under sides'of these plates or strips 4 and 5, as by riveting, are rear casters 8 and forward casters 9, respectively, which extend down through the sockets 2 and 3, respectively. These casters may be of any well known construction, and preferably are of the ballbearing kind as shown, and'the sockets '2 and; 3 are of sufiicient diameter to allowthese' casters to swing aroundfreely intoany. position, while extending jfsufliciently far below the lower side of the board 1 to support the device a short distance above the floor, preferably somewhat more than half 'th'e'diameter ofrthe caster wheel.

Along the front end of the board 1 1s a strip 10 extending downward, which pref- Specifieation of Letters Patent. Patgnted Feb, 15, 1916, j Application filed April 19, 1915. seam... 22,868. i l I erably is provided'with 'aithin facing strip 11 of-material adapted to make efiicient frictional contact with the floor-or other extended surface. Rubber is the most suitable floor or other. surface when the device is supported upon all. of' the four casters. 8

and 9.

Upon the upper side of the board or base i 1 is abody of padding 12, confined by suitable material 13 which is stretched over the padding and fastened around the edge of the board, as by the tacks or nails it, which also preferably hold a cushioning strip 15 extending continuously around the edge of the base, so'that the device will not mar furniture or other objects with which it may be brought into contact, The padding I 12 and material 13 may be any suitable upliolstering materials, While -the cushioning strip 15 is preferably of rubber.

Constructed as above .de cribed, the device will normally rest up 11 four casters 8 and 9. v

In using the device, the person kneels upon the rear partv of the device with the center ofgravity of the body back of the forward casters 9, so that the device will thus maintain its bearing upon all of-its four] casters. The person, by pushing against the surrounding floor or other sur face with the" feet or hands may move the device about in any direction and-thereh be transported-over the surface as the wor may require'. However, ifthe person lean forward, bringing the center of gravity of. the body forwardly of the forwardcasters This contactwill efi'ectively prevent further movement; of the de- 'vice over the surface, and will form an effective reactive means for the exertion or .actionof the person in. operating upon the floor or other surface, as in scrubbing or finishing; and, for any .kindof work which maybe required to be done, will afiord a, firm and steady foundation for the person inv doing the work, At the same time, thede-' vice is always ready, through-themere act of the person raising the bodybackwardly 4 Ti thedevice, to again be supportedupon the four casters, and thus be capable of moving freely in any direction as soon as the person desires to move to a new region dental to performing the work, hardly any mental effort is required. It is necessary for the person to bend forward to work upon the floor or other surface, and it is a very natural act to raise the body when about to move to a new region of the floor or other surface. Therefore, the operator readily becomes accustomed to the operation of the device; and while the full benefit of the cushioned rest for the knees of the person is attained, and the moving about is greatly facilitated by having a transporting means rather than requiring the person to creep over the floor or other surface, there is no attendant disadvantage such as there would be incidental to the operation of some braking means which required a special effort upon the part of the operator. While thus being simple in operation, the device is also simple in construction, so that it is inexpensive, both in first cost and in operation,

not being limdle to become deranged orto require any extensive repairs.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: I i

1. Aknce rest comprising freely rotatable transporting means and braking means operated by shifting the position of a weight supported by said rest.

2. A knee rest comprising a base, freely rotatable transporting means on the base, and means on the base to engage with the surface over which the rest travels, thereby braking said transporting means.

3. A knee rest comprising a base, freelyrotatable transporting means on the base,

i and means on the ,base'to engage with the surface over which the rest-travels, thereby braking said transporting means, said means being brought into said contact by tilting'said rest through diflerent disposition of the weight thereon.

e t. A kneerest comprising a base, a for ward transporting means thereon, a rearward transporting means thereon, said rearward transporting means being close to the rear of said base, but said forward means being a considerable distance back from the front of the base and braking means near the front of said ase adapted to-make contact with the floor or surface over which said rest travels when weight is imposed on said knee rest forwardly of the forward transporting means, but said knee rest being adapted to bear on its forward and rear transporting means when said weight is imposed back of said forward transporting means.

5. A knee rest comprising a base, rear casters on said base near-its rear end, forward casters on said base a considerable distance back from its front end and only slightly forward of its middle, and braking means on said base extending down therefrom near its front end, out of contact with the floor or surface when all of said casters bear on said fioor or surface, but making at contact with said door or surface when said main rest is tilted forward raising its rear casters from the floor or surface, and thereby preventing the movement of said main rest upon its forward casters.

6. A knee rest comprising a base, rear casters on said base near its rear end, forward casters on said base a considerable distance back from its front end and only slightly forward of its middle, a strip extending down from said base along near its front end, and a frictional facing on said strip to make contact with the floor or surface when said main rest is tilted forward raising its rear casters, and preventing movement of said main rest on its front masters. v

7. A knee rest comprising a base having rear sockets near its rear end and forward sockets a considerable distance back from itslee front end and slightly forward of its middle, said sockets being formed by holes through said base, a plate fixed to the upper side of said base and'extending across said rear sockets, rearward casters mounted on said plate and extending down through said sockets, a plate fixed to the upper side of said base across said forward sockets, forward casters mounted on said plate and extending down through said forwardsockets, said rearward and forward casters extending. below the lower side of the base and forming supporting and transporting means" for the knee rest, a strip fixed to said base along its front end part, and a frictional facing on said strip presented downwardly and adapted to make frictional contact with the floor or other surface when said rest is tilted forward raising its rear casters, and

thereby preventing movement of said rest on 1'20 its forward casters. V

I MALCOLM w. M iNrYnn' Witnesses :7.

JAM'ns N; RAMsnr, CLARENCE PERDEW. 

